Digital procedures will change face of the country

By: Garland M. Baker B.

Exclusive to A.M. Costa Rica

Editor's Note: While this article was accurate at the time of publication, some information may now be outdated. We are currently preparing a comprehensive update. Sign up for our Alerts to be notified as soon as the revised content is live!

Expats need to prepare themselves for Costa Rica’s Gobierno Digital and Notaría Digital.

The digital government is slowly but surely taking over tasks that were once terribly inefficient.   Two examples are the issuing of drivers licenses and passports.  The Banco de Costa Rica, a key player in Costa Rica’s digital government, has begun taking over both.  As of July 1, the bank had given out 10,500 appointments for renewing driver’s licenses and passports.

The transportation ministry estimates there are 400,000 driver’s licenses and 45,000 passports needing renewal.  The Banco de Costa Rica currently has the capability of handling 1,000 appointments per day.

The banking authority’s digital system is running full blast, much to the chagrin of those trying to hide money in the country.

Notaries are told to spill beans on buyers and sellers

By: Garland M. Baker B.

Exclusive to A.M. Costa Rica

Editor's Note: While this article was accurate at the time of publication, some information may now be outdated. We are currently preparing a comprehensive update. Sign up for our Alerts to be notified as soon as the revised content is live!

Notaries who handle property transactions have been told that they must register and provide reports to the nation's financial watchdog. The order means that information about purchasers and sellers will be more widely available.

Resolution number 814-2007 of the Notary Directorate, published June 22, advises that all notaries dealing in financial transactions must register with the Superintendencia General de Entidades Financieras.  This includes, but is not limited to, purchase and sale contracts, mortgages, liens, and trusts.

This institution is the one that is supposed to oversee financial organizations.  It is the one that is getting so much flak for not doing its job regarding the Brothers Villalobos, the collapsed Banco Elca, among others.

This news is bad for expats buying property in Costa Rica and trying to hide the transaction from their home country’s tax authorities.  This mandate means notaries will need to register as any bank or financial house would and turn in all their paperwork regarding financial transactions — with names, addresses, and phone numbers — for review and entry into a database.